With the increases in life expectancy which have resulted from medical advances, a larger proportion of the world's population lives to an advanced age. As a result, there are now a larger proportion of aged and infirm people than there were previously.
Aged or infirm persons have needs which are different than those of the general population. In particular, aged and infirm persons may frequently require the assistance of a special device in order to walk with safety. Among such devices, which are known to the prior art, are walking aid canes in which the base of the cane is broadened by the addition thereto of four legs which provide a firmer base for the cane to prevent the user from falling.
In previous walking aid canes, the leg members of the cane have generally projected upwardly and inwardly at an angle from a supporting surface with the leg members connected at their upper ends to an upwardly extending central support post. The legs of such canes formed what may be termed a pyramidal configuration. While such canes have been somewhat satisfactory, they have suffered from a number of drawbacks. With the cane legs forming a pyramidal configuration, the center of gravity of the cane is relatively high so that the cane may be tipped over to permit falling of the user. Further, the pyramidal configuration of the cane legs has interfered with the user's foot and leg movements with the user's foot in close proximity to the cane.
To avoid interference of the cane with his foot movement, the user may be forced to position the cane away from his body. This is generally unsatisfactory since the supporting force provided by the cane is then not directed upwardly in a straight line through the user's arm and shoulder. Rather, the supporting force provided by the cane will be angled upwardly in a direction toward the user's body such that the force applied by the user to the cane will have a side force component directed away from the user's body. The side force component will have a tendency to tip the cane and to permit the user to fall.
A further disadvantage of previous walking aid canes is that the handle member of the cane is restricted in its vertical positioning by a vertically elevated connection point between the upper ends of the inwardly angled cane legs and the cane support member. The handle member of the cane will, generally, be mounted in telescoping relation with respect to the cane support member. However, due to the vertically elevated connection point between the cane legs and support member, the downward adjustment of the handle member is limited by the vertically elevated connection point which prevents downward movement of the handle member beyond this point. Additionally, in walking aid canes of the prior art, the inwardly angled position of the cane legs has limited the extent of frictional engagement between the legs and a supporting surface.
In providing a solution to the deficiencies of previous walking aid canes, it would be desirable to have a walking aid cane in which the configuration of the leg members provided a cane with a very low center of gravity. Such a cane would be more difficult to tip over and would, thus, provide firmer support to an aged or infirm user. Also, it would be desirable to provide a walking aid cane in which the shape and position of the leg members was such that the cane could be placed more closely adjacent to the user's foot and leg without interfering with the user's movements. Such a cane would be safer since there would be less tendency for the user to trip and to fall.
It would also be desirable to provide a walking aid cane in which the cane legs make contact with a supporting surface over a larger frictional area. Such a cane would provide greater frictional engagement between the extremities of the legs and a supporting surface to prevent slippage of the cane with respect to the supporting surface. Additionally, it would be desirable to have a walking aid cane in which the handle member could be vertically adjusted with respect to a support member without interference from the cane legs and their point of connection to the cane support member. Such a cane would provide greater adjustability of the handle member so that the cane could be more readily accommodated to users of various height.